Valeria Drinking: A Case Study

After the death of her younger sister, Valeria had become noticeably withdrawn from both her family and friends in the past few months and had become less interested in her appearance. Valeria stopped participating at clubs and other activities she did outside of school, and her grades dropped at school. She was now moody and had become pessimistic in her outlook towards life and complained of feeling worthless at points. Valeria’s closes friends started saying that they’ve seen Valeria drinking with a group of older students after school. Valeria was very close to her younger sister and appeared to have been the most affected by and least accepting of his death. It’s very important to understand why Valeria’s alcohol use and emotional state. …show more content…
She began to express her deep grief over the death of her beloved sister. With gentleness and support her teacher encouraged Valeria to grieve her loss, understanding that each individual has a unique way to grieve, and that Valeria will need to. After the teacher and Valeria’s family had their intervention with her, Valeria agreed to see a psychiatrist, who specialized in teenage substance abuse problems. After her visit to the psychiatrist Valeria was assessed for anti-depressant medications and was given a prescription to help her through the first several months. Over the months of her therapy, it became clear that Valeria had begun to rely on alcohol and was drinking to self-medicate her depression. The psychiatrist noted that Valeria’s family needed to address its poor communication, which became pronounced after the death of a family member. Valeria’s substance abuse was, in part a symptom of her pain and her inability to express her agony in a way that it could bring healing. With several months of therapy, Valeria and her family was able to develop a deeper bond as they worked together through the